Dynamic notary system

ABSTRACT

A dynamic notary system having one or more processors, and one or more non-transitory computer readable medium coupled to the one or more processors with at least one of the computer readable medium being local to the one or more processors. The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium stores computer executable instructions, that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to: (1) verify a notary with user identification information stored on the at least one computer readable medium local to the one or more processors, (2) retrieve a document to be notarized from the one or more non-transitory computer readable medium, (3) receive a signatory&#39;s electronic signature, (4) receive the notary&#39;s electronic signature, (5) apply a notary seal to the document, and (6) lock the document in an unchangeable format.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

FIELD OF DISCLOSURE

The present invention relates to notarizing documents. Moreparticularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus and productof manufacture for electronically notarizing documents after receivingdocument changes, while in the absence of a network connection.

BACKGROUND

Parties that execute documents as part of a transaction havehistorically sought out notary publics to verify the identity of theparty signing a document and witness the signing of that document. Thisnotarization of documents is traditionally performed on printeddocuments by a live notary public in the presence of the signatory. Theinconvenience of seeking out a notary public to verify the identity andwitness the signature of signatories to a document has led to remotenotarization.

Remote notarization systems generally take two forms. First, remotenotarization systems may employ document repositories to allow remoteparties to a transaction to upload static copies of a document, which asignatory downloads and signs in the presence of a notary. Other remotenotarization systems allow a notary public to verify the identity of asignatory and witness the signatory's signature across a networkconnection, such as the internet.

Remote notarization systems using document repositories may allow fornegotiation of terms within a document and uploading of subsequentrevisions agreed to by all the parties to the document. However, theterms of the document may not be changed once the document is finalizedand approved for notarization. Therefore a signatory who seeks a changein the terms of the document at the time of notarization will not beallowed to negotiate and effect a change to the document. The remotenotarization systems usually require a finalized version locked fornotarization prior to the signatory's arrival at the notary.

Remote notarization systems enabling notaries to verify identity andwitness signatures remote from the signatory may allow for ease ofnotarization, but require a finalized document agreed to by the partiesto effect a notarization. Usually these documents are provided at thetime of notarization by the signatory signing the document.

Common to these systems is the requirement that the notarization beperformed on a static document to which the parties have previouslyagreed and finalized well in advance of notarization. Additionally,these notarization systems require an active network connection at thetime of the notarization, in order for the notary to perform thenotarization. These notarizations systems therefore limit the locationin which notarization may occur to those areas with active networkconnections. These notarization systems also limit the ability to effectchanges to the document where a notary may be empowered to negotiatewith the signatory to the document.

Therefore, a need exists for an electronic notarization service whichmay accept changes to the document to be notarized at the time ofnotarization. A need also exists for an electronic notarization systemwhich allows for notarization of documents in absence of the means torender the document to a print version. Further a need exists for anelectronic notarization system capable of notarizing a document inabsence of an active network connection.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the inventive concepts disclosed hereinand many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily understoodby reference to the following detailed description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of hardware and computer executableinstructions constructed in accordance with the inventive conceptsdisclosed herein.

FIG. 2 is a software flow diagram of an implementation of a registrationin accordance with the inventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIG. 3 is a software flow diagram of an implementation of the computerexecutable instructions for a notarization in accordance with theinventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIG. 4 is a software flow diagram of an implementation of the computerexecutable instructions for an electronic notary journal entry inaccordance with the inventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a computer system providing the electronicnotary journal as a network-based or cloud-based service in accordancewith the inventive concepts disclosed herein.

FIGS. 6A and 6B cooperate to show an example of a locked document thathas been notarized in accordance with the inventive concepts disclosedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the inventive conceptsdisclosed herein in detail, it is to be understood that the inventiveconcepts are not limited in their application to the details ofconstruction and the arrangement of the components or steps ormethodologies set forth in the following description or illustrated inthe drawings. The inventive concepts disclosed herein are capable ofother embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways.Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminologyemployed herein is for the purpose of description and should not beregarded as limiting the inventive concepts disclosed and claimed hereinin any way.

In the following detailed description of embodiments of the inventiveconcepts, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide amore thorough understanding of the inventive concepts. However, it willbe apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the inventiveconcepts within the disclosure may be practiced without these specificdetails. In other instances, well-known features have not been describedin detail to avoid unnecessarily complicating the instant disclosure.

The inventive concepts disclosed herein are generally directed to adynamic electronic notary system which allows a notary, registered witha notarization authority and the dynamic electronic notary system, toverify registration with locally stored or available information,retrieve a locally stored document to be notarized, receive one or morechanges to the document, and notarize a document without accessing anetwork connection. The dynamic electronic notary system will bedescribed hereinafter in the context of a notarization of electronicdocuments without accessing a network connection, but it is to beunderstood that the instant inventive concepts are equally applicable tonotarization of all documents renderable in electronic format, as willbe understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art presented withthe instant disclosure.

As used herein, the terms “network-based,” “cloud-based” and anyvariations thereof, are intended to cover the provision of configurablecomputational resources on demand via interfacing with a computernetwork, with software and/or data at least partially located on thecomputer network, by pooling the processing power of two or morenetworked processors, for example.

As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,”“including,” “has,” “having,” “containing,” or “involving,” andvariations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. Forexample, a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a listof elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but mayinclude other elements not expressly listed.

Further, unless expressly stated to the contrary, “or” refers to aninclusive or and not to an exclusive or. For example, a condition A or Bis satisfied by anyone of the following: A is true (or present) and B isfalse (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (orpresent), and both A and B are true (or present).

In addition, use of the “a” or “an” are employed to describe elementsand components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely forconvenience and to give a general sense of the inventive concept(s).This description should be read to include one or at least one and thesingular also includes the plural unless it is obvious that it is meantotherwise.

Finally, as used herein any reference to “one embodiment” or “anembodiment” means that a particular element, feature, structure, orcharacteristic described in connection with the embodiment is includedin at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrase “in oneembodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarilyall referring to the same embodiment.

Referring now to FIG. 1, shown therein is a dynamic notary system 10according to the instant disclosure. The dynamic notary system 10comprises one or more processor 12, one or more non-transitory computerreadable medium 14, and computer executable instructions 16 stored onthe one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14.

The one or more processor 12 may be implemented as a single processor 12or multiple processors 12 working together to execute the computerexecutable instructions described herein. Exemplary embodiments of theone or more processor 12 include a digital signal processor (DSP), acentral processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a multi-core processor,and combinations thereof. The one or more processor 12 is coupled to theone or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14 and capable ofcommunicating with the one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 14 via a path 18 which can be implemented as a data bus, forexample. The one or more processor 12 may be capable of communicatingwith an input device 20 and an output device 22 via paths 24 a and 24 b,respectively. Paths 24 a and 24 b may be implemented similarly to, ordifferently from path 18. For example, 24 a and 24 b may have a same ordifferent number of wires and may or may not include a multidroptopology, a daisy chain topology, or one or more switched hubs. Thepaths 18, 24 a and 24 b can be a serial topology, a parallel topology, aproprietary topology, or combination thereof. The one or more processor12 is further capable of interfacing and/or communicating with one ormore networks 26, via a communications device 28 such as by exchangingelectronic, digital and/or optical signals via the communications device28 using a network protocol such as TCP/IP. It is to be understood thatin certain embodiments using more than one processor 12, the one or moreprocessor 12 may be located remotely from one another, locating in thesame location, or comprising a unitary multicore processor (not shown).The one or more processor 12 is capable of reading and/or executingcomputer executable instructions 16 and/or creating, manipulating,altering, and storing computer data structures into the one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14.

The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14 storescomputer executable instructions 16 and may be implemented as anyconventional non-transitory computer readable medium 14, such as randomaccess memory (RAM), a hard drive, a hard drive array, a solid statedrive, a flash drive, a memory card, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a BLU-RAY, afloppy disk, an optical drive, and combinations thereof. When more thanone non-transitory computer readable medium 14 is used, one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14 a may be located in the samephysical location as the one or more processor 12, and one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14 b may be located in a remotephysical location from the one or more processor 12. The physicallocation(s) of the one or more non-transitory computer readable medium14 can be varied, and the one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 14 may be implemented as a “cloud memory,” i.e. one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14 which is partially, orcompletely based on or accessed using the network 26, so long as atleast one of the one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14is located local to the one or more processor 12.

The input device 20 transmits data to the one or more processor 12, andcan be implemented as a keyboard, a mouse, a touch-screen, a camera, acellular phone, a tablet, a smart phone, a PDA, a microphone, a networkadapter, a camera, a scanner, and combinations thereof. The input device20 may be located in the same physical location as the one or moreprocessor 12, or may be remotely located and/or partially or completelynetwork-based. The input device 20 communicates with the one or moreprocessor 12 via path 24 a.

The output device 22 transmits information from the one or moreprocessor 12 to a notary, such that the information can be perceived bythe notary. For example, the output device 22 may be implemented as aserver, a computer monitor, a cell phone, a tablet, a speaker, awebsite, a PDA, a fax, a printer, a projector, a laptop monitor, andcombinations thereof. The output device 22 communicates with the one ormore processor 12 via the path 24 b.

The network 26 preferably permits bi-directional communication ofinformation and/or data between the one or more processor 12 and thenetwork 26. The network 26 may interface with the one or more processor12 in a variety of ways, such as by optical and/or electronicinterfaces, and may use a plurality of network topographies andprotocols, such as Ethernet, TCP/IP, circuit switched paths, andcombinations thereof. For example, the network 26 may be implemented asthe Internet, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), ametropolitan network, a wireless network, a cellular network, aGSM-network, a CDMA network, a 3G network, a 4G network, a satellitenetwork, a radio network, an optical network, a cable network, a publicswitched telephone network, an Ethernet network, and combinationsthereof. The network 26 may use a variety of network protocols to permitbi-directional interface and communication of data and/or informationbetween the one or more processor 12 and the network 26.

In one embodiment, the one or more processor 12, the one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14, the input device 20, theoutput device 22, and the communications device 28 may also beimplemented together as a smartphone, a PDA, a tablet device, such as aniPad, a netbook, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or any othercomputing device.

The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14 preferablystores the computer executable instructions 16 comprising a dynamicnotary application 30. The one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 14 may also store other computer executable instructions 32 suchas an operating system and application programs such as a wordprocessor, for example. The computer executable instructions for thedynamic notary application 30 and the other computer executableinstructions 32 may be written in any suitable programming language,such as C++, C#, or Java.

Referring now to FIG. 2, in one embodiment, the dynamic notaryapplication 30 may reside on one or more non-transitory computerreadable medium 34 apart from the one or more processor 12. The one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium 34 may comprise a serveraccessible by website, a hard drive, a hard drive array, a solid statedrive, a flash drive, a memory card, a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a BLU-RAY, afloppy disk, an optical drive, and combinations thereof. In the contextof one embodiment, the dynamic notary application 30 is available fordownload from a website that may contain various applications.

A notary 36 accessing the one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 34 selects the dynamic notary application 30 for download. Thenotary 36 may be directed to a notary registration prompt in a step 38.If the notary 36 does not have a valid notary registration with afederal, state, municipal, or other recognized entity, the notary 36 maybe denied download of the dynamic notary application 30 in a step 40. Ifthe notary 36 possesses a valid notary commission number with a federal,state, municipal, or other recognized entity, the notary enters thenotary commission number in step 38. One or more processor (not shown)in communication with a communications network (not shown) queries anotary commission number database (not shown) for the recognized entitycorresponding to the notary's 36 notary commission number for validationof the notary commission number. The notary commission number isvalidated by the recognized entity, as being registered to the notary 36and being within a valid notary commission term, the notary commissionterm being the dates between the initial notary commission and a notarycommission expiration date. If the one or more processor 12 validatesthe notary commission number with the recognized entity, the one or moreprocessor 12 in communication with the one or more non-transitorycomputer readable medium 34 may query a database (not shown) comprisinga record of notary commission numbers linked to prior downloads of thedynamic notary application 30 in a step 42. The recognized entity mayalso provide a card or other device to the notary with information usedto locally validate the notary by the dynamic notary application 30. Theinformation can be optically, magnetically or electronically readable.For example, the information can be in the form of a bar code, matrix(such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,726,435), stored on amagnetic stripe or radio frequency identification device.

If the notary commission number entered by the notary 36 in step 38 hasbeen previously linked to a download of the dynamic notary application30, the download may be denied in a step 44. If the notary commissionnumber is unlinked to a dynamic notary application 30 download, thedynamic notary application 30 may be downloaded to the one or more localnon-transitory computer readable medium 46 in a step 48.

The notary 36 may then enter demographic information, billing accountinformation, shipping address, registered notary address, notarycommission number in a step 50 which may create a notary profileregistering the dynamic notary application 30 to the notary commissionnumber and a computing device for the local non-transitory computerreadable medium 46. The notary 36 may then be prompted to enter adesired username and password for the notary profile and for the dynamicnotary application 30, in a step 52. Successful registration of thenotary commission number and computing device for the localnon-transitory computer readable medium 46 coupled with the notaryprofile may allow the notary 36 to login to the dynamic notaryapplication 30 in a step 54, where the notary 36 may be prompted for ausername and password, previously created for the notary profile anddynamic notary application 30, in order to use the dynamic notaryapplication 30.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, the dynamic notary application 30,in use, is accessed by a notary 56 via the one or more processor 12. Thenotary 56 may be directed by the one or more processor 12 to login, in astep 58. The notary 56 provides login credentials, e.g. username,password, and notary commission number. The one or more processor 12verifies the notary 56 comparing the login credentials to useridentification information 60 stored locally on the one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 14. The one or more processor 12may verify the notary 56 without accessing the network 26 via a networkconnection. The user identification information 60 may comprise usernameand password, notary commission number for the notary 56 registered tothe dynamic notary application 30, and security questions and answers,for example. If the login credentials and the locally stored useridentification information 60 do not match, the dynamic notaryapplication 30 may end, in step 62. If the login credentials match thelocally stored user identification information 60, the notary 56 mayaccess documents stored locally on the one or more non-transitorycomputer readable medium 14.

Upon accessing the dynamic notary application 30, the notary 56 mayselect a document to be notarized 64, at step 66. The document to benotarized 64 may be any document requiring notarization which isrenderable in electronic format, such as a real estate contract, a landor mineral lease, or a stock certificate, for example. When the notary56 selects the document to be notarized 64 in step 66, the one or moreprocessor 12 retrieves the document to be notarized 64 from the one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium 14. The one or moreprocessor 12 may retrieve the document to be notarized 64 withoutaccessing a network connection. The one or more processor 12 may thendisplay the document to be notarized 64 on the output device 22. The oneor more processor 12 may also retain the document to be notarized 64 inthe one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14 until asignatory 68 may be identified and that identity verified by the notary56.

Once the document to be notarized 64 has been selected and retrieved instep 66, the one or more processor 12 may prompt the notary 56 to verifythe identity of the signatory 68, in step 70. The identity of thesignatory 68 may be verified by the notary through inspection ofidentification verification media 72 comprising a birth certificate, adriver's license, a military identification card, a voter registrationcard, a passport, a passport card, a certificate of naturalization, acertificate of citizenship, a permanent resident card, a consular reportof birth abroad, a state employee identification, or a federal employeeidentification, for example. The notary may then capture one or moreimage of the identification verification media 72 with the input device22, such as a camera or a scanner, for example, in communication withthe one or more processor 12 and the one or more non-transitory computerreadable medium 14. The one or more processor 12 may then store the oneor more image of the identification verification 72 on the local one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium 14. If the identity of thesignatory 68 may not be verified, in step 70, the document to benotarized 64 is deselected by the one or more processor 12, in step 74.If the identity of the signatory 68 is verified, in step 70, the one ormore processor 12 may prompt the notary 56 for any changes to thedocument to be notarized 64, in step 76.

The document to be notarized 64 may comprise a plurality of termscreating a contract or legally binding duty or covenant, for example.When prompted by the one or more processor 12 for one or more changes inthe document to be notarized, in step 76, the notary 56 may input one ormore changes to the terms of the document to be notarized 64. The one ormore changes to the terms of the document to be notarized 64 maycomprise corrections to errors in the document to be notarized 64,negotiated changes to amounts, terms, or duties within the document tobe notarized 64, negotiated additions to the terms of the document to benotarized 64, or other modifications, additions, or deletions to thedocument to be notarized 64, for example. If one or more changes aremade to the document to be notarized 64, the one or more processor 12may receive the one or more changes to the document to be notarized 64via the input device 20, such as a touchscreen, keyboard, or other inputdevice, for example. After receiving the one or more change to thedocument to be notarized the one or more processor 12 may then effectthe one or more changes to the document to be notarized 64, in step 78.The one or more processor 12 may then return to step 76 and prompt thenotary 56 for one or more further changes to the document to benotarized 64. If one or more changes to the document to be notarized 64are unnecessary or the one or more changes have been received by the oneor more processor 12 and no more changes are necessary, the one or moreprocessor may prompt the notary 56 for signatures, in step 80.

The one or more processor 12, prompting the notary 56 for signatures, instep 80, may prompt the notary 56 for a signatory 68 signature, in step82. The signatory's 68 signature can be received by the input device 20and stored electronically as data in the one or more non-transitorycomputer readable medium 14. For example, the signatory's 68 signaturemay be received through a signature pad, a touchscreen, a keyboard, amouse, or any other input device. If the one or more processor 12 doesnot receive a signatory 68 signature, the one or more processor 12 maycause the dynamic notary application 30 to return, in step 84, to thedocument selection step 66. If the one or more processor 12 receives asignatory's 68 signature, in step 82, the one or more processor 12, mayalso prompt the notary 56 for the notary's 56 signature, in step 86. Ifthe one or more processor 12 does not receive a notary's 56 signature,in step 86, the one or more processor 12 may cause the dynamic notaryapplication 30 to return, in step 88, to the document selection step 66.If the one or more processor 12 receives a signatory 68 signature instep 82 and a notary 56 signature in step 86, the one or more processor12 may prompt the notary 56 to apply an electronic notary seal 90, instep 92.

Once the one or more processor 12 prompts the notary 56 to apply theelectronic notary seal 90 and the notary 56 applies the electronicnotary seal 90 in step 92 to the document to be notarized 64. Thedocument, signed and notarized by the receipt of the signatory 68signature, notary 56 signature, and electronic notary seal 90, isnotarized and may be locked by the one or more processor 12, in step 94.The notary 56 prompted by the one or more processor 12, in step 94, mayselect that the notarized document be locked in an unchangeable formatto form a locked document 97 as depicted in FIGS. 6A and 6B. Prior tolocking the notarized document in an unchangeable format, the one ormore processor 12 may generate a unique notarization code 96, in step98. Upon locking the notarized document in an unchangeable format, theone or more processor 12 may create an electronic notary journal entry100, in step 102.

The electronic notary seal 90 serves as an electronic representation ofa traditional notary seal with which notaries imprint documents toeffect a notarization. The electronic notary seal 90 may comprise agraphically based seal, a linear barcode, a matrix barcode, asteganographic image, for example. The electronic notary seal 90 maycontain information similar to a traditional notary seal, such as aphrase “Notary Public,” the name of the notary 56 to whom the electronicnotary seal belongs, the notary commission number of the notary 56 towhom the electronic notary seal 90 is issued, a notary commission numberexpiration date of the notary commission number of the notary 56 to whomthe seal is issued, a name of a state where the notary is commissioned,for example. The electronic notary seal 90 may also comprise a timestamp indicating the time and date at which the notary seal is appliedto the document to be notarized 64. Further, the electronic notary seal90 may comprise global positioning system data indicative of a locationwhere the document was locked. The electronic notary seal 90 may be readwith an optical reader programmed with software adapted to read theinformation from the electronic notary seal.

Locking the notarized document, in step 94, may comprise saving thelocked document 97 in a raster file, such as a bitmap, jpeg, graphicsinterchange format (gif), portable network graphics (PNG), or taggedimage file format (TIFF) file, for example. Locking the notarizeddocument may also comprise saving the locked document 97 as a vectorfile such as a computer graphics metafile (CGM) or scalable vectorgraphics (SVG) file, for example. Locking the notarized document mayalso comprise saving the document as a .pdf file. For further example,locking the notarized document may comprise taking a hash orcryptographic hash of the notarized document, or encrypting thenotarized document.

Generating a unique notarization code 96, in step 98, may comprisecreating a numeric code, alphanumeric code, hash, binary number series,linear barcode, matrix barcode, cryptographic key, or any other suchunique code for identifying the electronic notary journal entry 100corresponding to the notarization of the locked document 97. The uniquenotarization code 96 may be embedded in the notarized document prior tolocking the document in an unchangeable format, in step 94. The uniquenotarization code 96 may also be stored in the electronic notary journalentry 100, where the unique notarization code 96 is implemented as anumeric code, alphanumeric code, hash, binary number series, linearbarcode, matrix barcode, or similar code. The unique notarization code96 may also be used to look up or search for the electronic notaryjournal entry 100.

A print off of an exemplary locked document 97 is depicted in FIGS. 6Aand 6B. In general, the locked document 97 includes the uniquenotarization code 96, the electronic notary seal 90, and a body 99. Theelectronic notary seal 90 is shown by way of example as a graphicallybased notary seal and the unique notarization code 96 is shown by way ofexample as a barcode, but can be implemented in a variety of formats asdiscussed above. The body 99 can be text and/or graphics and may be inthe form of a legal document such as a car title, lease, medallionsignature guarantee stamp, or the like. For medallion signatureguarantee stamps, the document may be certified, authenticated, andsigned by, for example, an officer or employee of a financialinstitution, such as a bank or investment institution, instead of oralong with a notary public.

The unique notarization code 96, the electronic notary seal 90 and thebody 99 can all be in distinct areas, and/or overlap. For example, theunique notarization code 96 and the electronic notary seal 90 can beprovided as a watermark overlaid onto the body 99.

Creating the electronic notary journal entry 100, in step 102, maycomprise creating an entry in an electronic notary journal 104. Theelectronic notary journal entry 100 may comprise one or more fields orlocations within the one or more non-transitory computer readable media14 for the unique notarization code 96, a signatory name 106, a list ofpeople 108 present at the time of the notarization of the document, theone or more images of the identification verification media 72, a timeand date 110 indicating the time and date at which the electronic notaryseal 90 is applied to the document to be notarized 64, and notaryidentification information 112. The notary identification information112 may comprise a name, commission number, address, other identifyinginformation, or any combination thereof.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, the electronic notary journal 104 may beimplemented, in one embodiment, as a “network-based” or “cloud-based”service. As shown in FIG. 5, an electronic notary journal service 114may comprise one or more host systems 116 interfacing and/orcommunicating with one or more user terminal 118 via a network 120.

The one or more user terminal 118 may be implemented as a personalcomputer, a smart phone, network-capable television set, televisionset-top box, a tablet, an e-book reader, a laptop computer, a desktopcomputer, a network-capable handheld device, a video game console, aserver, a digital video recorder, a DVD-player, a Blu-Ray player, adynamic notary system 122, similar to the dynamic notary system 10, andcombinations thereof, for example. In one embodiment, the one or moreuser terminal 118 may comprise an input device 124, an output device126, a processor (not shown) capable of interfacing with the network120, processor executable instructions (not shown), and a web browsercapable of accessing a website and/or communicating information and/ordata over a network, such as the network 120. As will be understood bypersons of ordinary skill in the art, the one or more user terminal 118may comprise one or more non-transitory computer readable mediumcomprising processor executable instructions and/or softwareapplications, for example as described above in reference to the dynamicnotary system 10.

The input device 124 may be implemented in the same or similar manner asthe input device 20 described above. The input device 124 may receiveinput from a user and/or one or more processor, and transmitting suchinformation to the one or more user terminal 118 and/or host system 116.

The output device 126 may be implemented in the same or similar manneras the output device 22 described above. The output device 126 mayoutput information in a form perceivable by a user and/or one or moreprocessor. For example, the output device 126 may be a servercommunicating with one or more processors which does not communicateinformation directly to the one or more user terminal 118, or any of theexemplary output devices described in reference to output device 22. Itis to be understood that in some exemplary embodiments, the input device124 and the output device 126 may be implemented as a single device,such as, for example, a touchscreen or a tablet. It is to be furtherunderstood that as used herein the term user is not limited to a humanbeing, and may comprise a computer, a server, a website, a processor, anetwork interface, a human, a user terminal, a virtual computer, andcombinations thereof.

The electronic notary journal service 114 may include one or more hostsystems 116. For example, FIG. 4 illustrates the electronic notaryjournal service 114 having two host systems 116 and 128. The hostsystems 116 and 128 may be partially or completely network-based orcloud-based, and not necessarily located in a single physical location.Each of the host systems 116 and 128 may further be capable ofinterfacing and/or communicating with the one or more user terminal 118via the network 120, such as by exchanging signals (e.g. digital,optical, and/or the like) via one or more ports (e.g., physical orvirtual) using one or more network protocols, for example. Additionally,each host system 116 and 128 may be capable of interfacing and/orcommunicating with other host systems directly and/or via the network120. One of the host systems may be implemented such that it may onlycommunicate indirectly with the one or more user terminal 118 throughthe other host system, for example.

In some embodiments, host systems 116 and 128 may be independentlycontrolled by separate entities. The host system 116 may be controlledby a first entity and the host system 128 may be controlled by a secondentity distinct from the first entity. For example, host system 116 maybe controlled by a state or federal agency and host system 128 may becontrolled by an electronic notary journal service provider. The hostsystem 116 controlled by the state or federal agency may communicaterequests for information regarding electronic notary journal informationto the host system 128 controlled by the electronic notary journalservice provider, who then communicates the requested information backto the state or federal agency through communication between hostsystems 128 and 116, respectively, for example.

The host system 116 may be referred to hereinafter as the “first hostsystem” and the host system 128 may be referred to hereinafter as the“second host system”. The first host system 116 may comprise one or moreprocessor 130 working together, or independently to, execute processorexecutable instructions, one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 132 capable of storing processor executable instructions, one ormore input devices 134, and one or more output devices 136. Each elementof the first host system 116 may be partially or completelynetwork-based or cloud-based, and not necessarily located in a singlephysical location.

The one or more processor 130 may be implemented as a single orplurality of processors 130 working together, or independently toexecute the logic as described herein. Exemplary embodiments of the oneor more processor 130 may be implemented in the same or similar mannerto those described above for one or more processor 12. The one or moreprocessor 130 may be capable of communicating with the one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 132 via a path (e.g., data bus).The one or more processor 130 may be capable of communicating with theinput device 134 and output device 136 via one or more paths (e.g., databus).

The one or more processor 130 may be further capable of interfacingand/or communicating with the one or more user terminal 118 via thenetwork 120. For example, the one or more processor 130 may be capableof communicating via the network 120 by exchanging signals (e.g.,digital, optical, and/or the like) via one or more physical or virtualports using one or more network protocol. It is to be understood that incertain embodiments using more than one processor 130, the one or moreprocessor 130 may be located remotely from one another, located in thesame location, or comprising a unitary multi-core processor (not shown).The one or more processor 130 may be capable of reading and/or executingprocessor executable instructions and/or of creating, manipulating,altering, and/or storing computer data structures into the one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 132.

The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 132 may becapable of storing processor executable instructions. Additionally, theone or more non-transitory computer readable medium 132 may beimplemented similarly or the same as described above in reference to theone or more non-transitory computer readable medium 14. It is to beunderstood that while one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 132 may be located in the same physical location as the firsthost system 116, the one or more non-transitory computer readable medium132 may be located remotely from the first host system 116, and maycommunicate with the one or more processor 130 via the network 120.Additionally, when more than one non-transitory computer readable medium132 is used, a first non-transitory computer readable medium 132 may belocated in a remote physical location from the first host system 116.The physical location(s) of the one or more non-transitory computerreadable medium 132 may be varied. Additionally, one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 132 may be implemented as acloud memory (i.e. one or more non-transitory computer readable medium132 may be partially or completely based on or accessed using thenetwork 120).

The one or more input device 134 may transmit data to the one or moreprocessor 130, and may be implemented as the input device 20, previouslydescribed in reference to the dynamic notary system 10. The one or moreinput device 134 may be located in the same physical location as thefirst host system 116, or may be remotely located and/or partially orcompletely network-based or cloud-based.

The one or more output devices 136 may transmit information from the oneor more processor 130 to a user, such that the information may beperceived by the user. For example, the one or more output device 136may be implemented as the output device 22, previously described inreference to the dynamic notary system 10. The one or more output device136 may be physically co-located with the first host system 116, or maybe located remotely from the first host system 116, and may be partiallyor completely network-based or cloud-based (e.g. website).

The first host system 116 may directly communicate with the second hostsystem 128 and/or communicate via network 120. Generally, the first hostsystem 116 may include one or more processors 130 capable of executing afirst set of processor executable instructions and the second hostsystem 128 may include one or more processors 138 capable of executing asecond set of processor executable instructions.

The second host system 128 may further comprise one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium 140, one or more input device142, and one or more output device 144. Each element of the second hostsystem 128 may be partially or completely network-based or cloud-based,and not necessarily located in a single physical location. The secondhost system 128 may be implemented in the same or similar manner as thefirst host system 116, previously described.

The network 120 may be implemented in the same or similar manner as thenetwork 26, previously described in reference to the dynamic notarysystem 10. The network 120 may use a variety of network protocols topermit bi-directional interface and/or communication of data and/orinformation between the first host system 116, the second host system128, and/or the one or more user terminals 118.

The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium 132 and 140 maystore processor executable instructions and/or information comprising aone or more user database 146, one or more electronic notary journal104, and processor executable instructions 148.

The one or more user database 146 may include information aboutcustomers engaging with the first host system 116. For example, one ormore customers may access the first host system 116 through the one ormore user terminal 118. The first host system 116 may provide anelectronic notary journal website to the one or more user terminal 118.The electronic notary journal website may be directed by the one or moreprocessor 130. The one or more processor 130 may also direct the one ormore customer to a login/registration portion of the website.

In some embodiments, customers may register a user profile with thefirst host system 116. The user profile may be created and/or stored inthe user database 146 by the processor 130. For example, the customermay be prompted by the processor 130 to provide login credentials (e.g.,username and/or password). Login credentials may allow the processor 130to authenticate the customer against the user database 146. In thismanner, the first host system 116 may access the user profile in theuser database 146. The user profile may include information including,but not limited to, demographic information including, but not limitedto, name, age, address, billing account information, username, password,behavioral information, experience, gender, and/or the like.

If user authentication is successful, the user profile may be accessedby the one or more processor 130. If the user authentication fails, thecustomer may be returned to the login/registration page, where thecustomer may be prompted for a username and password again. Optionally,the one or more processor 130 may block a customer from entering ausername and/or password after a preset number of failed authenticationattempts.

In some embodiments, customers may be prompted by the one or moreprocessor 130 to provide information for a user profile withoutregistration and/or authentication using a username and/or password. Theuser profile may be created and/or stored in the one or more userdatabase 146 by the one or more processor 130. For example, the one ormore processor 130 may prompt the customer to provide demographicinformation (e.g., name, address, billing account information, and thelike), and store the information in a user profile for the customerusing a unique customer identification.

The electronic notary journal 104 may be stored on a public or privateserver, the first host system 116, or the second host system 128 incommunication with the network 120 via a network connection. Theelectronic notary journal 104 may be accessible through the network 120via a network connection such that a user of the electronic notaryjournal service 114 may access one or more electronic notary journalentry 100. One or more electronic notary journal entry 100 may be storedwithin the electronic notary journal 104 within the public or privateserver, the first host system 116, or the second host system 128. Theone or more electronic notary journal entry 100 may be linked orassociated with the electronic notary journal 104 within which the oneor more electronic notary journal entry 100 is stored, for example, asin a relational database. The one or more electronic notary journalentry 100 may also be linked or associated with the locked document 97for which the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 wascreated. Linking or associating the locked document 97, electronicnotary journal 104, and one or more electronic notary journal entry 100may be performed by the electronic notary journal service 114.

In one embodiment, the user submits login information, registers,creates a user profile, or otherwise accesses the electronic notaryjournal service 114 via the network 120, as previously described. Theuser may register and subsequently log in as a notary or as a non-notaryuser. Registration and subsequent log in as a notary may provideadditional functionality in the electronic notary journal service 114when accessing one or more electronic notary journal 104 or one or moreelectronic notary journal entry 100.

Where the user registers as a notary, upon logging into the electronicnotary journal service 114, the one or more processor 130 may presentthe notary with one or more webpages, screens, or display prompts, forexample. The one or more processor 130 may present, in webpages, screensor display prompts, the notary's electronic notary journal 104corresponding to their active notary commission. The one or moreprocessor 130 may then provide functions related to the notary'selectronic notary journal 104 and functions related to the electronicnotary journal service 114. The functions related to the notary'selectronic notary journal 104 may comprise searching the one or moreelectronic notary journal entry 100 of the electronic notary journal104, viewing the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100,printing the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100,downloading a copy of the one or more electronic notary journal entry100, or editing the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 toadd comments without modifying, changing, or deleting the informationcontained within the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100populated as a result of notarizing a document, for example. Thefunctions related to the electronic notary journal service 114 maycomprise searching the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100across a plurality of electronic notary journals 104, modifying thenotary's registration information, changing the notary's password, orupdating the notary's commission expiration date, for example.

When searching the electronic notary journal 104 for the one or moreelectronic notary journal entry 100, the notary may locate the one ormore electronic notary journal entry 100 by search of the informationcontained within the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 byinputting data into a text field for a search or by selecting the one ormore electronic notary journal entry 100 from a graphical representationof the electronic notary journal 104, for example. The data input intothe text field may comprise, for example, a unique identification numberfor the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100, the signatoryname 106, names or identifying information for one or more of the peoplelisted on the list of people 108 present at the time of notarization,the time and date 110, the notary identification information 112, theunique notarization code 96, or any combination thereof. Upon searchingthe electronic notary journal 104, the one or more processor 130 mayretrieve one or more of the one or more electronic notary journal entry100 having information matching the search query input into the textfield.

Where the user registers as a non-notary, upon logging into theelectronic notary journal service 114, the one or more processor 130 maypresent the user with functions comprising displaying the user'sprofile, searching one or more electronic notary journals 104, searchingone or more electronic notary journal entry 100, viewing the one or moreelectronic notary journal entry 100, downloading a copy of the one ormore electronic notary journal entry 100, modifying the user'sregistration information, or changing the user's password, for example.The functions related to the electronic notary journal service 114 maycomprise searching one or more electronic notary journal entry 100,viewing the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100, printingthe one or more electronic notary journal entry 100, downloading a copyof the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 to one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium local to the user terminal 118,accessing one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 associatedwith the user profile, or accessing one or more notarized documentassociated with the user profile. Association of one or more electronicnotary journal entry 100 or one or more notarized document with a userprofile may occur where the user profile is registered to the signatoryof the notarized document, the user profile is registered to the agentof the signatory of the notarized document, or the user profile isregistered to a party to the notarized document, for example. Thefunctions related to the electronic notary journal service 114 maycomprise searching the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100from a plurality of electronic notary journals 104, modifying thenotary's registration information, changing the notary's password, orupdating the notary's commission expiration date, for example.

In one embodiment, the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100may be cryptographically locked such that accessing the one or moreelectronic notary journal entry 100 requires a cryptographic key, theunique notarization code 96 generated in step 98. In another embodiment,the user may access the one or more electronic notary journal entry 100without use of a cryptographic key. In either event, the user may accessthe one or more electronic notary journal entry 100 of the electronicnotary journal 104, but may not modify, change, or delete theinformation contained within the one or more electronic notary journalentry 100.

In one embodiment, for notaries engaged in negotiation and notarizationof oil and gas leases for remote properties without network access, thedynamic notary system 10 may be embodied by a tablet device, such as aniPad. A notary 56, having the dynamic notary system 10 registered to thenotary's 56 valid notary commission number, may be empowered tonegotiate terms of an oil and gas lease. Although the general terms ofthe oil and gas lease may be discussed well in advance of finalizationand notarization of the lease, the notary 56 may be required to performfinal negotiations with a land owner at the remote property which is thesubject of the lease. The notary 56 may travel to the remote property,which may be without a network connection or wireless data services,with the dynamic notary system 10 in the form of the tablet device. Thenotary 56 may meet with the land owner who is the intended signatory 68of the lease, at the remote property, which is the subject of the lease,without access to the network connection or wireless data services.

The notary 56 may use the dynamic notary system 10 to verify the notary56 with user identification information stored on the at least onecomputer readable medium 14 local to the one or more processor 12 withinthe tablet device, as in step 58. Alternatively, the one or moreprocessor 12 within the tablet device can be used to read a bar code,matrix (such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,726,435) or otherinformation provided to the notary and within the notary's possession.

The notary 56 may then select the document to be notarized, as in step66, causing the one or more processor 12 to retrieve the document to benotarized 64 from the one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium 14 of the tablet device. The notary 56 may then verify thesignatory's 68 identity with identification verification media 72, as instep 70. In verifying the identity of the signatory 68, the notary 56may use a camera of the tablet device comprising the dynamic notarysystem 10 to take and store one or more images of the identificationverification media 72. The one or more processor 12 then stores the oneor more images of the identification verification media 72 in the one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium 14.

The notary 56 may perform final negotiations regarding the terms of thelease, the document to be notarized 64, with the signatory 68. Uponcompletion of final negotiations and agreement to the terms, the notary56 may make one or more changes to the document to be notarized 64, asin step 76.

Making one or more changes to the document to be notarized 64 may beeffected by loading the document to be notarized 64 into a wordprocessor program and making one or more changes or corrections to theterms of the document to be notarized 64. In another embodiment, makingone or more changes to the document to be notarized 64 may be performedusing the computer executable instructions comprising the dynamic notarysystem 10. Whether made through the word processing program or thecomputer executable code of the dynamic notary system 10, the one ormore changes may then be applied to the document to be notarized 64.

The notary 56 may then obtain the signatory's 68 signature, as in step82, where the signatory 68 electronically signs the document to benotarized 64 using the touchscreen of the tablet device. The notary 56may then electronically sign the document to be notarized 64, as in step86, using the touchscreen of the tablet device. The notary 56 may thencause the one or more processor 12 to apply the electronic notary seal90 to the document to be notarized 64, as in step 92. The one or moreprocessor 12 may then generate a unique notarization code 96, as in step98. The notary 56 may then cause the one or more processor 12 to applythe unique notarization code to the notarized document and lock thenotarized document, as in step 94. The one or more processor 12 may thencreate the electronic notary journal entry 100.

From the above description, it is clear that the inventive conceptsdisclosed herein are adapted to carry out the objects and to attain theadvantages mentioned herein as well as those inherent in the inventiveconcepts disclosed herein. While presently preferred embodiments of theinventive concepts disclosed herein have been described for purposes ofthis disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be madewhich will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art andwhich are accomplished within the scope and spirit of the inventiveconcepts disclosed herein and defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A dynamic notary system, comprising: one or moreprocessors; and one or more non-transitory computer readable mediumcoupled to the one or more processors, at least one of the computerreadable medium being local to the one or more processors, the one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executableinstructions, that when executed by the one or more processors cause theone or more processors to: verify a notary with user identificationinformation stored on the at least one computer readable medium local tothe one or more processors, retrieve a document to be notarized from theone or more non-transitory computer readable medium, receive asignatory's electronic signature, receive the notary's electronicsignature, apply a notary seal to the document, and lock the document inan unchangeable format.
 2. The dynamic notary system of claim 1, whereinverifying the notary and retrieving the document to be notarized areaccomplished without accessing a network connection.
 3. The dynamicnotary system of claim 1, wherein the computer executable instructions,when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or moreprocessor to receive at least one change to the document.
 4. The dynamicnotary system of claim 3, wherein the document include a plurality ofterms, and wherein the one of the one or more changes comprise a changeto the plurality of terms of the document to be notarized.
 5. Thedynamic notary system of claim 1, wherein the electronic notary sealcomprises a graphically based seal.
 6. The dynamic notary system ofclaim 5, wherein the electronic notary seal is a linear barcode.
 7. Thedynamic notary system of claim 5, wherein the electronic notary seal isa matrix barcode.
 8. The dynamic notary system of claim 5, wherein theelectronic notary seal is a steganographic image.
 9. The dynamic notarysystem of claim 5, wherein the electronic notary seal further comprisesa time stamp indicating the time and date at which the notary seal isapplied to the document to be notarized.
 10. The dynamic notary systemof claim 5, wherein the electronic notary seal further comprises globalpositioning system data indicative of a location where the document waslocked.
 11. The dynamic notary system of claim 1, wherein the computerexecutable instructions, when executed by the one or more processorscause the one or more processor to create an electronic notary journalentry, the electronic notary journal entry comprising data indicative ofa notarization of the document.
 12. The dynamic notary system of claim11, wherein the data comprises a signatory name.
 13. The dynamic notarysystem of claim 11, wherein the data comprises a list of people presentat a time of a notarization of the document.
 14. The dynamic notarysystem of claim 11, wherein the data comprises one or more images of oneor more identification verification media, the identificationverification media chosen from a list comprising, a birth certificate, adriver's license, a military identification card, a voter registrationcard, a passport, a passport card, a certificate of naturalization, acertificate of citizenship, a permanent resident card, a consular reportof birth abroad, state employee identification, or federal employeeidentification.
 15. The dynamic notary system of claim 11, wherein thedata comprises a time and date indicating the time and date at which thenotary seal is applied to the document to be notarized.
 16. One or morenon-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executableinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause theone or more processor to effect notarizing of a document, the computerexecutable instructions comprising: verifying a notary with useridentification information; retrieving a document to be notarized;receiving a signatory's electronic signature; receiving a notary'selectronic signature; applying an electronic notary seal to the documentto be notarized; and locking the document in an unchangeable format. 17.The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16,wherein verifying the notary and retrieving the document to be notarizedare accomplished without accessing a network connection.
 18. The one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein thecomputer executable instructions further comprise receiving at least onechange to the document to be notarized.
 19. The one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein thedocument includes a plurality of terms, and wherein the change is madeto one or more terms of the document to be notarized.
 20. The one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein theelectronic notary seal comprises a graphically based seal.
 21. The oneor more non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein theelectronic notary seal is a linear barcode.
 22. The one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein theelectronic notary seal is a matrix barcode.
 23. The one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein theelectronic notary seal comprises a steganographic image.
 24. The one ormore non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 20, wherein theelectronic notary seal further comprises a time stamp indicating thetime and date at which the notary seal is applied to the document to benotarized.
 25. The one or more non-transitory computer readable mediumof claim 20, wherein the electronic notary seal further comprises globalpositioning system data indicative of a location where the document waslocked.
 26. The one or more non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 16, wherein locking the document in an unchangeable format,further comprises creating an electronic notary journal entry, theelectronic notary journal entry comprising data indicative of anotarization of the document.
 27. The one or more non-transitorycomputer readable medium of claim 26, wherein the data comprises asignatory name.
 28. The one or more non-transitory computer readablemedium claim 26, wherein the data comprises a list of people present ata time of a notarization of the document.
 29. The one or morenon-transitory computer readable medium of claim 26, wherein the datacomprises one or more images of one or more identification verificationmedia, the identification verification media chosen from a listcomprising, a birth certificate, a driver's license, a militaryidentification card, a voter registration card, a passport, a passportcard, a certificate of naturalization, a certificate of citizenship, apermanent resident card, a consular report of birth abroad, stateemployee identification, or federal employee identification.
 30. The oneor more non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 26, wherein thedata comprises a time and date indicating the time and date at which thenotary seal is applied to the document to be notarized.
 31. Anelectronic notary journal, comprising; one or more processors; and oneor more non-transitory computer readable medium coupled to the one ormore processors, the one or more non-transitory computer readable mediumstoring computer executable instructions, that when executed by the oneor more processors cause the one or more processors to: receive one ormore locked document and one or more electronic notary journal entryassociated with the one or more locked document; store the one or morelocked document and the one or more electronic notary journal entry; andprovide access to the one or more locked document and one or moreelectronic notary journal entry over a network connection.